Chapter 5 - 5 – Spiritual Flow Technique

As the two conversed, the blood moon in the sky became even more eerie and enchanting. Suddenly, accompanied by a piercing wail, a chilling wind swept across the entire academy. Hikigaya Hachiman watched as the surrounding buildings visibly decayed and weathered at an alarming speed... "We can't stay here any longer!" Making up his mind, Hikigaya Hachiman picked up Yotsuya Miko and began running. Suddenly, several dark figures appeared on both sides of the corridor. Immediately, an alert blared in Hachiman's mind from the system: "Multiple low-level evil spirits detected. Host, please be cautious!" "Low-level evil spirits, huh?" Rather than being frightened, Hachiman was actually delighted by the system's message. What he lacked most right now were means to deal with higher-level evil spirits. These spirits in front of him were basically delivering spirit coins to his doorstep! "You hide here for now..." Looking at the evil spirits circling around him, Hachiman found a corner and placed Miko down there. He warned her not to wander around, then summoned the Demon-Slaying Blade from the void. The metallic feel of the blade in his hand gave Hachiman a sense of reassurance. Staring at the hesitant spirits around him, he mocked, "Which one of you wants to die first?" Whether it was because the evil spirits understood him or not, just as his words fell, one of them lunged at him. Hachiman raised his blade to block its claws, then swiftly decapitated it in one clean strike. "Successfully eliminated one low-level evil spirit. Gained 50 spirit coins!" The system notification in his mind filled him with joy. He immediately summoned his status screen. Name: Hikigaya Hachiman Age: 17 Occupation: Low-level Exorcist Spiritual Energy: 100/100 Abilities: None Weapon: Basic Demon-Slaying Blade Spirit Coins: 225 Same simple status as before—except now the spirit coin count had surpassed 200! He could finally exchange for a new ability! Seeing that he had gathered enough, Hachiman quickly opened the Spirit Coin Store and, without hesitation, purchased the only available item—Spiritual Flow Technique. Once the technique was purchased, the "Abilities" field in his status updated automatically to "Spiritual Flow Technique (Basic)." "Time to test its power!" Looking at the three remaining low-level evil spirits, Hachiman's eyes glinted as he formed the hand seals that had just emerged in his mind. Suddenly, he felt his spiritual energy concentrate and flow into the palm of his right hand in a distinct rhythm. On instinct, he extended his hand. A stream of pure spiritual energy shot out from his palm, piercing through all three evil spirits in one go before blasting through the window and smashing into the wall of the opposite teaching building. Boom! With a thunderous roar, dust and smoke erupted. When it cleared, a section of the building wall had collapsed! At the same time, Hachiman's mind was filled with three notifications: "Successfully eliminated one low-level evil spirit. Gained 50 spirit coins!" "Successfully eliminated one low-level evil spirit. Gained 50 spirit coins!" "Successfully eliminated one low-level evil spirit. Gained 50 spirit coins!" In an instant, his spirit coins—which had just been depleted—returned to 175. So strong! Retracting his hand, Hachiman looked at the devastation his spell had caused, his heart brimming with excitement. He hadn't expected that even the most basic Spiritual Flow Technique would possess such destructive power. At this rate, defeating high-level evil spirits might not be impossible after all... "Amazing..." Leaning against the wall in the corner, Yotsuya Miko looked at Hachiman as he wiped out the remaining evil spirits in one blow. Hope surged in her heart once again. If Hachiman had that kind of power, maybe—just maybe—he could defeat that evil spirit too. But then she shook her head bitterly. What right did she have to expect Hachiman to risk his life for her? In her despair, Yotsuya Miko didn't notice the shadow creeping up behind her... "Ah!" Her sudden scream instantly drew Hachiman's attention. He turned around urgently, only to catch a glimpse of Yotsuya Miko being dragged into a swirling black vortex by countless hands. As she was fully pulled in, the vortex abruptly vanished, revealing the mottled wall behind it. "Damn it..." Seeing her taken, Hachiman's face darkened. Just a few hours ago, he hadn't even known her. But after finally meeting someone else who could see evil spirits, he couldn't allow her to die like this! "System, can you locate the high-level evil spirit?" Taking a deep breath, Hachiman's mind raced. This space was clearly constructed by that high-level evil spirit. And the fact that it abducted Yotsuya Miko while he was busy fighting low-level spirits—it had to be that same entity. Since it didn't show itself and take her away directly, but instead used that method... That could only mean— "Is it wary of my power too?" Hachiman recalled the Spiritual Flow Technique he had just acquired. Maybe its power was even greater than he had imagined! "Ding! Use spatial scan? Cost: 100 spirit coins." In response to his question, the system automatically suggested the best solution. "Do it!" Despite wincing at the cost, Hachiman didn't hesitate to agree. A human life was more important than a few coins. Worst case, he could go out and hunt more evil spirits later. "Scanning in progress, please wait..." After confirming and deducting 100 coins, the system began scanning the space. A few seconds later, the system voice rang out again in his mind: "Scan complete. 18 evil spirits detected in this space: 14 low-level, 3 mid-level, 1 high-level. Full distribution synced to the map." "So many evil spirits in the school?" Hachiman was stunned. He didn't know whether this space's spirits corresponded to the real-world Sobu High, but hearing such numbers still sent a chill down his spine. Then he opened the map, watching the red dots moving about—and his lips curled into a grin. So many evil spirits... How many spirit coins could they yield? Would it be enough for a better weapon or a new spell...?